Part of D-8 Summit meeting held in Cairo, Egypt. Photo courtesy of D-8 organization X account.
The 11th D-8 Summit will be held under the theme: "Investing in Youth and Supporting Small and Medium Enterprises: Shaping Tomorrow's Economy."
It will focus on fostering economic collaboration among member states, with key discussions revolving around trade, energy, and technology.
On Wednesday afternoon, the Turkish presidency announced that President Recep Tayyip Erdogan would visit Egypt on Thursday, 10 December, to attend the 11th D-8 Summit and the Special Session on the situation in Palestine and Lebanon.
Erdogan's visit comes amid improving relations between Turkey and Egypt, following a decade-long rift. It also follows the ousting of Bashar Al-Assad's regime in Syria, where Turkey seems to be the main external power broker.
Moreover, Iran's Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced that President Masoud Pezeshkian will visit Egypt to attend the summit. This will be the first visit by an Iranian president to the country in over a decade.
Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto, and Bangladesh's Chief Adviser Muhammad Yunus will also attend the summit, discussing shared development challenges in their countries.
In addition, the summit will feature meetings for foreign ministers and economic experts to outline actionable strategies for boosting intra-D-8 trade, investment, and economic ties.
On Tuesday, Ragy El-Etreby, Egypt's assistant foreign minister for international and regional multilateral economic affairs and D-8 commissioner, chaired a preparatory meeting for the upcoming summit.
During the meeting, El-Etreby noted that the D-8 member states represent a huge market, with a population of over one billion and a gross domestic product of nearly $5 trillion.
Egyptian Minister of Foreign Affairs Badr Abdelatty hosted the 21st Council of Foreign Ministers meeting of the D-8 organization in the New Administrative Capital on Wednesday, Egypt's foreign ministry announced.
The D-8 organization was established in 1997 to enhance economic cooperation and leverage collective resources for sustainable development among its member countries.
Egypt, the organization's current chair, will hand over its chairmanship to Indonesia in January 2026.
Summit's critical timing
The summit is held at a critical time, serving as a unique platform for the participating leaders to address the escalating Middle East crises.
Their participation underscores regional cooperation amid the mounting regional crises, especially in Syria, Gaza, and Lebanon.
One-on-one meetings between leaders are expected on the summit's sidelines to discuss these pressing regional issues.
Speaking to reporters in Jakarta before departing for Cairo, the Indonesian president highlighted Egypt's position as a regional power in the Middle East.
Indonesia's foreign ministry spokesman, Rolliansyah Soemirat, also emphasized the importance of the upcoming summit.
"The role of D-8 is increasingly important in the joint efforts to strengthen global awareness regarding the situation in Palestine, especially in the Gaza Strip," Soemirat said.
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